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Gareth Bale plays down talk of move away from Tottenham

Image: Gareth Bale: Subject of recent transfer talk

Tottenham winger Gareth Bale has played down talk of a summer move away from White Hart Lane.

Spurs legends Ricky Villa and Ossie Ardiles joined those saluting Bale's excellence and then spoke of their hope that he remains at White Hart Lane this summer. "He really is a great player, a top player," Villa said. "He is one of these players who can do different things. "I expect that he will stay at the club - they have a chance to qualify for Europe and this is a good point for him. I expect him to play for the club for two or three more years. "Everyone wants to play for these big, big clubs, but he has a lot of things to do for Tottenham. "Maybe in the next few years he will need to move, but at the moment I believe he is expecting to win something important with this club. This is very important for him, I think." Ardiles, who moved to Spurs 35 years ago with his compatriot Villa, is also confident that Bale will stay at the club. He concedes the chances of the player being tempted to leave, though, will increase if Tottenham do not qualify for the Champions League. "As Villas-Boas has said, we need to be in Europe to keep him and I think this is what is going to happen," said Ardiles, who played 311 times for the north London club. "He is very happy playing at Spurs - he is a big idol there and a big hero. At the moment he is very happy indeed. "From the point of view of a Tottenham supporter, I hope he stays for as long as possible at the club."

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